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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

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Centennial Trail rangers say cyclists exceed 15 mph speed limit

Susan Broom rides her bike on Friday near where the Centennial Trail ends and will join Sontag Park in Nine Mile Falls. (Tyler Tjomsland)
Susan Broom rides her bike on Friday near where the Centennial Trail ends and will join Sontag Park in Nine Mile Falls. (Tyler Tjomsland)

TRAILS -- The Spokane River Centennial Trail wasn't meant for speed, according to rangers fielding reports of unsafe bicycle riding encounters.

Serious injury could result from a silently fast cyclist surprising and colliding with a recreational trail user from behind or around a blind corner.

The staff at Riverside State Park and the Friends of Centennial Trail have been hearing concerns from people regarding bicyclists exceeding the 15 mph posted speed limit on the 37-mile paved trail from Nine Mile to the State line.

And frankly, 15 mph is too fast when pedaling into congestion.

"Several people have reported having unsafe encounters with speeding cyclists while on horseback, slower bicyclists or simply walking along the trail," said Toni Weyman Droscher, Washington State Parks spokeswoman.

"This popular, multi-use trail is used by hundreds of thousands of people each year. The paved trail has many blind corners and curves, making it difficult for a speeding bicyclist to come to an abrupt stop.

State Park rangers who oversee the trail emphasize the following points about the Spokane River Centennial Trail:

  • The posted speed limit is 15 mph
  • It's a multi-use, non-motorized trail used by pedestrians, dog-walkers, runners, in-line skaters, little kids learning to ride bikes or in strollers, older citizens with walkers, horses, bicyclists and others. The trail also is ADA-accessible and used by people in wheelchairs.
  • Courtesy and principles of trail etiquette call for bicyclists to yield to pedestrians. Everyone should yield to horses.
  • The trail was designed for recreational riding and is not suitable for riding at high speeds. Bicyclists looking to commute at higher speeds or to train, should consider using the regional bike network lanes.


Rich Landers
Rich Landers joined The Spokesman-Review in 1977. He is the Outdoors editor for the Sports Department writing and photographing stories about hiking, hunting, fishing, boating, conservation, nature and wildlife and related topics.

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